Billionaire project: Population, crime, and government spending over the decades

WASHINGTON – Steve Ballmer, former Microsoft CEO and billionaire owner of the Los Angeles Clippers has released a treasure trove of data with the intent of providing the public with facts about government spending.

He announced the website, USAFacts, Tuesday in an interview with The New York Times that was published Tuesday.

The 291-page report breaks down various functions of the government based on the constitution, and aims to provide numbers without bias.

Here’s some facts from the study compiled by economists, professors, and data crunchers:

POPULATION

Age

Working-age and elderly population has slightly increased with the total population by a few percentage points since 1980.

Race

The racial makeup of the country since 1980 has seen some fluctuation, with the non-Hispanic, White population taking a nearly 20 percent dip. The Hispanic population meanwhile has increased my more than 12 percent.

Families

More people are getting married, but having no kids.

According to the numbers, married parents have taken a dip in the population, down more than 10 percent. People who describe themselves as single with no children increased by 6 percent.

GOVERNMENT

Finances

Total revenue topped at $5.2 trillion in 2015, with expenditures totaling $5.4 trillion.

Crime

While property crime took a dip since 1980, violent crime has remained relatively flatlined.

Immigration

Approved visas increased by 50 percent, showing tracking from 1997 to 2015 jumping from 5.9 million to 10.9 million.

Green cards saw a 400 thousand increase since 1987.

Poverty & standard of living

The poverty rate has increased by a half percentage point since 1980, standing at 13.5 percent in 2015.

Money set aside to aid people who are disadvantaged increased by more than 600 million.

In 1980, $247 billion was given, and in 2014, that number was $864 billion.

Jobs

While the working age population has grown by more than 60 million since 1980, the number of jobs-per-person has remained flatlined at about .681 in 2015 compared to .622 in 1980.

Health

More people are obese than recorded in 1995, increasing from 16.8 percent to 29.8 percent in 2014.

Life expectancy though, has remained about the same, with the average age of death hovering around 73.

Education

More people are getting their high school diploma and earning a bachelor’s degree.

The number jumped by around 10 percent since 1992 for both categories.

Household net worth

The average household assets jumped by 50 percent since 1980 – going from $419,025 to $816,271 in 2015.